Top 10 Metal Gear Solid Boss Battles

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Folks that make you say "Snnnnnnnnnnnnnnnake!"

By IGN PlayStation Team

With Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots less than 24 hours away from its worldwide launch, it's more important than ever to look back at those fights that helped define the Metal Gear Solid franchise. You'd have to be a super soldier to overcome these formidable enemies; fortunately, Solid and Naked Snake were more than up to the task. Compiled below are the top ten boss fights across the first three titles in the Metal Gear Solid Series. How will they match up to the battles in Metal Gear Solid 4? We'll all find out tomorrow.

Metal Gear Solid 2 was a huge leap up from the original in many ways, and certainly in terms of presentation. Olga was the first boss fight in the sequel, and the context of her battle is what made it awesome. The rain and lightning set a fantastic mood, and the draping canvas that she used for cover during part of the battle added that extra bit of flair. The first-person gun view was put to great use here as well, challenging you to use cover while popping out to take precise shots at Olga.

She trained him, she mentored him, she betrayed him. The Boss was the fight that every player of Metal Gear Solid 3 couldn't wait for, simply because you felt that you needed closure for Naked Snake. This was a great battle, not only because of its cinematic setting in a field of flowers, but because of its focus on CQC techniques. You may have been the student, but to claim the title of Big Boss, you would have to show that you were now the master.

He takes a licking and keeps coming back for more. Revolver Ocelot continually turned up in the first three Metal Gear Solid titles, using his remarkable skill with firearms. While there are plenty of moments with the gunslinging antagonist, the one that stands out is the first fight with him in Metal Gear Solid, where you discover Kenneth Baker, the ArmsTech president, trapped in a room lined with C4. Not only do you need to protect Baker, you have to defeat Ocelot and maneuver in this tight space without getting blown up. Good luck with that!

The further you went in Metal Gear Solid, the more you hated Liquid. He's fighting you with a helicopter, he's impersonating your mentors, and he even turns out to be your brother. Right after trying to kill you with a Metal Gear, Liquid's defining fight came on top of the busted Rex. Here, both Snake and Liquid are beaten and bloodied, Meryl's dying, and Liquid's ready to vent about his lot in life. The fists that flew might not have been the flashiest fight in MGS history, but it was definitely one of the most emotional.

In the history of videogames, few bosses have brought us to our knees the way Sniper Wolf did. In a second, Wolf took Snake from the commander of the battlefield to a helpless bystander as she capped Meryl and used the woman for bait. When Snake and Wolf finally tussled on the frozen, tree-filled lot on Shadow Moses, fans were treated to a sniper v. sniper battle that made you fear and respect your adversary. Sniper Wolf's motives were admirable, her character was brilliant, and her relationship with Otacon added yet another layer to the game's lauded story.

One of the five members of the Cobra unit, The Fury used fire in battle to express his anger. Along with his flamethrower, his use of a jet pack meant that he was not only deadly at range, but quick to close in as well. The pillared scene for the fight meant that you had plenty of places to hide, but The Fury's fire tricks meant that much of the area was constantly engulfed in flame, giving you few safe places to lay low. The darkened lightning let the fire really stand out and make this one of the scarier fights in the franchise.

Snake's old war buddy, Gray Fox (a.k.a. Cyborg Ninja) had Snake chasing him around a computer room and attempting to avoid his martial arts attacks while trying to hunt the ninja down after he'd turn invisible. This is one of those fights that had multiple strategies that you could use, with chaff grenades as one option or simple hand-to-hand combat as another. It goes down as one of the most memorable fights partly due to Gray Fox's taunting personality, and of course his later appearance (and explanation) later in the game.

Raven's massive frame and gigantic M61 Vulcan cannon said all you needed to know about the Inuit -- he was going to be a bitch to fight. It's the man v. man battle in the icy depths of the nuclear facility that got Raven his spot on this list. As black birds fluttered above, Snake was forced to use anything he could find in the warehouse for cover and ice the stalking Vulcan Raven. If the foe spotted you, his cannon made short work of your flesh. Strategy, tension, and an awesome death scene -- this fight had it all.

Perhaps one of the greatest boss fights in gaming history, The End challenged not only gamers' ability to wield a sniper rifle, but their endurance as well. The fight could last hours if you were patient, though you could strap on night vision goggles and hunt him down if your trigger finger got too itchy. A cool aside is that The End could be taken out in an unrelated cutscene earlier in the game, or he could be left to die of old age if you saved the game and didn't come back for a while.

Easily, this is one of the most memorable battles not only of the Metal Gear Solid Series, but of just about any game series. Not only is Psycho Mantis an incredibly disturbing character, but the tricks that he pulls on players are truly legendary. He read the player's memory card to comment on your progress as well as other Konami saves on the device. He messes with the video on the screen. He even predicts your attacks apart from the now infamous "controller switch." He is, by far, one of the best bosses of all time.